Charles H. Houghton

Charles H. Houghton was a Union Army officer whose Civil War career was marked by repeated exposure to some of the most violent fighting around Petersburg and whose conduct ultimately earned him the Medal of Honor. Born on April 30, 1842, in Macomb, St. Lawrence County, New York, Houghton entered military service as a young man and eventually became closely identified with the 14th New York Heavy Artillery. At the two actions later recognized by the Medal of Honor, he was serving as Captain of Company L. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society records his highest rank as Colonel, while contemporary and postwar records also preserve his brevet advancement following his wartime service. Congressional Medal of Honor Society Houghton’s military career began before he joined the 14th New York Heavy Artillery. New Jersey Medal of Honor research records that he enlisted in the 60th New York Infantry on August 26, 1861. During that first period of service he advanced from the enlisted ranks, becoming a Sergeant and later a Second Lieutenant, before leaving that regiment on March 5, 1863. In December 1863 he returned to military service and joined the newly organized 14th New York Heavy Artillery, where he was appointed Captain of Company L. StudyRes The 14th New York Heavy Artillery had initially been organized for heavy-artillery and defensive duties. The regiment garrisoned positions around New York Harbor before being ordered south in the spring of 1864. On April 23, 1864, it left its garrison role and moved toward Washington before joining the IX Corps of the Army of the Potomac. Like several heavy-artillery formations during this period, its soldiers increasingly fought as infantry as Union armies required additional manpower for the Overland and Petersburg campaigns. NY State Military Museum Houghton soon experienced the brutality of front-line combat. During the fighting associated with Bethesda Church in June 1864, historical research records that he suffered wounds to the head, hand, and leg. Those injuries did not end his service. He remained with the regiment as the Army of the Potomac pushed toward Petersburg, where the campaign developed into months of entrenched warfare. StudyRes One of the defining episodes of Houghton’s career came on July 30, 1864, during the Battle of the Crater at Petersburg. Union engineers had excavated a mine beneath the Confederate defenses and packed it with explosives. When the mine detonated, it created an enormous opening in the Confederate line, and Union troops were ordered forward in an attempt to exploit the breach. The attack quickly became disorganized as soldiers crowded into and around the crater while Confederate forces recovered and concentrated fire on the attackers. Captain Houghton and the 14th New York Heavy Artillery were caught in this extraordinarily dangerous environment. His later Medal of Honor citation specifically recognized his conduct in the Union assault at the Crater, stating that he displayed conspicuous gallantry and repeatedly exposed himself voluntarily to great danger. Houghton himself later contributed an account titled “In the Crater” to Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, showing that the experience remained a significant part of his wartime memory and historical legacy. Army Yet the Crater was only the first of the two Petersburg actions for which Houghton would ultimately receive the Medal of Honor. On March 25, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s forces launched a major assault against the Union siege lines at Petersburg. The offensive centered on Fort Stedman, where Confederate troops achieved an initial breakthrough before Union forces counterattacked. Fighting spread into nearby defensive positions, including Fort Haskell. The battle came only weeks before the final collapse of the Confederate position at Petersburg. Houghton was again in the center of the action. During the Confederate assault that was repelled at Fort Haskell, he repeatedly exposed himself to danger while helping resist the attack. The Medal of Honor citation links his behavior there directly with his earlier courage at the Crater. During these actions he suffered multiple wounds; the official Army citation records that he was three times wounded and ultimately lost a leg. His right leg was so badly damaged during the March 25 fighting that it had to be amputated. Army Despite the severity of his wounds, Houghton survived. His wartime record brought further recognition, including brevet advancement. Postwar military research records that he was brevetted Major of U.S. Volunteers for his performance of duty, while other surviving records associate him with still higher brevet or honorary rank. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society currently records Colonel as his highest rank, which is why that rank is appropriate for the project’s main Rank field, while Captain remains his verified rank during the Medal of Honor actions. Suvcw Houghton was discharged from military service on September 11, 1865. By then, the 14th New York Heavy Artillery had completed a costly record of service extending from garrison duty to some of the hardest fighting of the final campaigns in Virginia. Contemporary New York records list Houghton among the regiment’s wounded officers and preserve him among its surviving captains. NY State Military Museum Medal of Honor More than three decades passed before Houghton’s battlefield conduct received the United States’ highest military decoration. On April 5, 1898, Charles H. Houghton was presented the Medal of Honor for his gallantry at Petersburg on July 30, 1864 and March 25, 1865. The decoration was not posthumous; Houghton survived the Civil War and lived to receive it personally. His official citation specifically joins the two episodes—the Union assault at the Crater and the repulse of the Confederate assault at Fort Haskell—as the basis for the award. Congressional Medal of Honor Society The Medal of Honor itself had been created during the Civil War, first for the Navy in 1861 and then for the Army in 1862. Its design and ribbon changed over time. Of particular importance to Houghton’s profile, the Army Medal of Honor ribbon was redesigned in 1896, replacing the earlier flag-inspired ribbon with vertically arranged red, white, and blue stripes. Houghton received his Medal in 1898, so for the historical-ribbon system used in your database, the correct entry is: Medal of Honor 1896–1903 Army ✅ This is why the earlier 1862–1895 Army version should not be used for his rack even though the heroic actions themselves occurred during the Civil War. The project is representing the historical award/ribbon period connected with the issuance of his decoration. Congressional Medal of Honor Society No additional clasp, star, or device has been verified for Houghton’s Medal of Honor, so the Medal should remain plain in the ribbon rack. Postwar Life After the war, Houghton settled in Metuchen, New Jersey. He worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad and became active in veterans’ affairs. His wartime experiences and his status as a severely wounded Union veteran kept him closely connected with the Civil War veteran community. In 1881, he served as commander of the Department of New Jersey, Grand Army of the Republic, one of the major organizations representing former Union soldiers and sailors. Suvcw Houghton also entered federal public service. Beginning in 1875, he served as United States Collector of Customs at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, a position he held for several years. His postwar life therefore combined civilian employment, veterans’ leadership, and federal service—a substantial second career for a man whose combat wounds had resulted in the loss of a leg. Suvcw His Civil War experience also became part of the written historical record. Houghton’s contribution “In the Crater” appeared in Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, placing him among veterans who personally documented major campaigns for later generations. The account connected his name not only with the Medal of Honor but also with the historical interpretation of one of Petersburg’s most famous and disastrous assaults. Google Books Charles H. Houghton died on April 6, 1914, in Jersey City, New Jersey. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, where Arlington’s Medal of Honor listing records his grave in Section 3, Grave 2411. Congressional Medal of Honor Society Houghton’s legacy rests on sustained courage rather than a single brief act. As a Captain of Company L, 14th New York Heavy Artillery, he endured the fighting of the 1864 campaign, survived severe wounds, distinguished himself in the chaos of the Battle of the Crater, and again exposed himself to extraordinary danger during the desperate Confederate assault near Fort Haskell on March 25, 1865. His service cost him a leg, but he survived the war, continued into public and veterans’ service, documented part of his own wartime experience, and lived long enough to receive the Medal of Honor on April 5, 1898. That award permanently linked Charles H. Houghton with two of the most dangerous episodes of the Petersburg campaign and preserved his place among the decorated Union soldiers of the American Civil War. Army